test

Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 2005Q4 SP5 Release Notes

Features and Enhancements

Sun Java System Web Server provides the following features and enhancements:

Java Servlet 2.3 and JavaServer Pages (JSP) 1.2 Support

Sun Java System Web Server includes a Java 2 Platform, Enterprise Edition (J2EE)-compliant implementation of the Java Servlet 2.3 and JavaServer Pages (JSP) 1.2 specifications. A J2EE-compliant Web container provides the flexibility and reliability needed to design and deploy Web applications that comply with Java technology standards. Web applications can be deployed on a per virtual server basis.

For information about these technologies, see the following resources:

For information about developing servlets and JSPs, see Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP4 Programmer’s Guide to Web Applications.

J2SE Platform 1.4 JDK/JRE Support

Sun Java System Web Server supports Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition (J2SETM) 1.4. J2SE software is bundled with the Web Server and installed during installation. You can also install your own JDK at a later time, following installation of the Web Server. Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 includes JDK 1.4.1 for HP-UX and JDK 1.4.2 for other platforms.

The 64-bit Solaris SPARC release of Sun Java System Web Server requires a 64-bit JDK. On all other platforms, a 32-bit JDK is required.

J2SE Platform 1.5 JDK/JRE Support

Sun Java System Web Server supports Java 2 Platform, Standard Edition (J2SE) 1.5 and has been tested and certified with 1.5.0_01 on Solaris, Linux and Windows platforms.

The 64-bit Solaris SPARC release of Sun Java System Web Server requires a 64-bit JDK, preferably JDK 1.5.0_06.

WebDAV Support

Sun Java System Web Server supports the Web-based Distributed Authoring and Versioning (WebDAV) protocol, which enables collaborative Web publishing with the following features:

WebDAV provides integrated support for content meta data, name space management, and overwrite protection. These technologies, combined with the many authoring tools that support WebDAV, provide an ideal development platform for collaborative environments.

NSAPI Filters Support

As of the 6.1 release, Sun Java System Web Server extends the Netscape Server Application Programmer's Interface (NSAPI) to support NSAPI filters.

Filters enable the custom processing of HTTP request and response streams, allowing a function to intercept and potentially modify the content presented to or generated by another function. For example, a plug-in could install an NSAPI filter to intercept an XML page generated by another plug-in's Server Application Function (SAF), then transform that XML page into an HTML, XHTML, or WAP page appropriate for the client. Alternatively, an NSAPI filter could decompress data received from a client before presenting it to another plug-in.

For more information, see Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP4 NSAPI Programmer’s Guide.

HTTP Compression Support

Sun Java System Web Server supports content compression, which allows you to increase delivery speed to clients and serve higher content volumes without incurring a corresponding increase in hardware expenses. Content compression reduces content download time, a benefit most apparent to users of dial-up and high-traffic connections.

For more information, see Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP4 Administrator’s Guide.

Search Engine Support

Sun Java System Web Server supports a Java-based search engine that provides full-text search indexing and retrieval. The search feature allows users to search documents on the server and display results on a Web page. Server administrators create the indexes of documents against which users will search, and can customize the search interface to meet specific needs.

The default URL end-users can use to access search functionality is:

http://<server-instance >:port number/search

Example:

http://plaza:8080/search

When the end-user invokes this URL, the Search page, which is a Java Web application, is launched.

For detailed information about conducting basic and advanced searches, including information about keywords and optional query operators, see the online Help provided with the search engine. To access this information, click the Help link on the Search page. For more information, see Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP4 Administrator’s Guide.

Enhanced Security

Sun Java System Web Server allows you to restrict access using flat file authentication. As of the 6.1 release, Sun Java System Web Server now supports the Java Security Manager. The Security Manager is disabled by default when you install the product, which may improve performance significantly for some types of applications. Enabling the Security Manager may improve security by restricting the rights granted to your J2EE Web applications. To enable the Security Manager, `uncomment' entries in the server.xml file:

<JVMOPTIONS>-Djava.security.manager</JVMOPTIONS>

<JVMOPTIONS>-Djava.security.policy=instance_dir /config/server.policy</JVMOPTIONS>

where instance_dir is the path to the installation directory of this server instance.

For more information about server.xml, see Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP4 Administrator’s Configuration File Reference.

JNDI Support

Sun Java System Web Server supports the Java Naming and Directory Interface (JNDI), which provides seamless connectivity to heterogeneous enterprise naming and directory services.

JDBC Support

Sun Java System Web Server provides out-of-the-box, seamless Java DataBase Connectivity (JDBC), and supports a wide range of industry-standard and customized JDBC drivers.

Sun ONE Studio 5 Support

Sun Java System Web Server supports SunTM ONE Studio 5, Standard Edition. Sun ONE Studio technology is Sun's powerful, extensible, integrated development environment (IDE) for Java technology developers. Sun ONE Studio 5 is based on NetBeans software, and integrated with the Sun ONE platform. (Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 and above also supports NetBeans 3.5 and 3.5.1.)

Sun ONE Studio support is available on all platforms supported by Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5. The plug-in for the Web Server can be obtained in the following ways:

Please note that the Sun ONE Studio 5 plug-in for Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5 works only with a local Web Server (that is, with the IDE and the Web Server on the same machine).

The behavior of the Sun ONE Studio 5 plug-in for Sun Java System Web Server is the same as that for Sun ONE Application Server 7. For information about using the Web application features in Sun ONE Studio 5, see the following tutorial at http://developers.sun.com/prodtech/javatools/jsenterprise/learning/tutorials/cdshop.pdf.

Set the Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5 instance as the default, and then take the same actions described in the tutorial.

Also see the following NetBeans training documents at http://www.netbeans.org/kb/index.html.

For more information about Sun ONE Studio 5, visit http://www.sun.com/software/sundev/jde/.

For additional developer resources, see Additional Sun Resources in these release notes.

Using Sun ONE Studio 5 for Debugging

Sun ONE Studio 5 can be used for `remote debugging' if you want to manually attach the IDE to a remote Web Server started in debug mode. The steps are as follows:

  1. Using the Sun Java System Web Server Administration interface, restart the server instance in debug mode (Server Manager > JVM General > Debug Enabled).

  2. Note the JPDA port number.

  3. Start the IDE.

  4. Choose Debug > Start.

  5. Select the dt_socket method, and then enter the remote machine name and the JPDA port number. At that moment, any breakpoint created in the IDE on servlet source code of a deployed application will be active.

Active Server Pages Support

Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5 supports the Active Server Pages 3.0 specification through Sun ONE Active Server Pages version 4.0.1 (formerly Sun Chili!Soft ASP) and 4.0.2. Sun ONE Active Server Pages adds a secure, enterprise-grade Active Server Pages engine to the Sun Java System Web Server.

Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5 provides support for Sun ONE Active Server Pages 4.0.1 and 4.0.2 on the following platforms:

A license is not required for Sun ONE Active Server Pages if you are installing to the Sun Java System Web Server. The Sun ONE Active Server Pages installer is available on the Companion CD if you purchased the Sun Java System Web Server Media Kit, or by download from http://www.sun.com/software/chilisoft/index.html. Please note the following:

For more information about Sun ONE Active Server Pages, visit the URL listed above.

PHP Compatibility

PHP, the popular page scripting language available from the PHP group (http://www.php.net), can be used with the Sun Java System Web Server using one of three supported APIs: CGI, NSAPI, and FastCGI. The PHP group provides detailed instructions on its Web site for configuring the PHP software to use any of the three supported APIs.

The CGI API is the most stable interface that can be used but will suffer from performance limitations inherent in CGI.

NSAPI utilizes the Sun Java System Web Server's native API to run the PHP software within the Web Server's memory. This configuration will provide the best performance, but risks crashing the server if non thread safe PHP modules are used.

The FastCGI interface provides a compromise between performance and stability by allowing the PHP software to remain running after serving requests while continuing to run outside of the Web Server's memory. If an unstable PHP module is used it will not cause the Web Server to crash. For this reason Sun recommends use of the FastCGI interface with the PHP software.

The FastCGI interface is supported with the Web Server via the installation of the FastCGI Add-On available from http://www.sun.com/download/products.xml?id=3f567f91.

Note –

The PHP software makes use of two environment variables to control the life cycle of PHP processes when run as a FastCGI process. PHP_FCGI_CHILDREN determines the number of PHP processes that will be created to respond to requests. PHP_FCGI_MAX_REQUESTS determines the number of requests a PHP process can respond to before terminating itself and being replaced with a new PHP process. Sun recommends against the use of PHP_FCGI_CHILDREN and recommends instead the FastCGI Add-On configuration parameter min-procs to control the minimum number of PHP processes.

NSS and NSPR Support

The version of NSS included in Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5 has been upgraded from 3.9.5 (in version 6.1 SP4) to 3.10.1.0 (32-bit) and 3.11 (64-bit). NSS is a set of libraries designed to support cross-platform development of security-enabled server applications. Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5 also includes NSPR 4.5.2.

Enhanced Hardware Accelerator Encryption Support

Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5 provides hardware accelerator support for Sun Crypto Accelerator 4000, a cryptographic accelerator board that enhances the performance of SSL on the Web Server.

64-bit Support on Solaris 10 (SPARC)

As of Sun Java System Web Server 6.1 SP5, a new 64-bit Solaris SPARC release is introduced to complement the existing 32-bit Solaris SPARC release. Sun encourages administrators to continue to deploy the 32-bit release of Sun Java System Web Server. The 64-bit release may be of use in certain memory-intensive deployments as it enables administrators to configure a larger file cache and Java heap than the 32-bit release. However, existing plug-ins are not compatible with the 64-bit release; these plug-ins will need to be recompiled for the 64-bit release by the plug-in vendor. Java web applications that use native, non-Java libraries will also need to be recompiled.

The 64-bit release is compatible with 64-bit Solaris kernels on UltraSPARC processors. The 64-bit release cannot be used on x86 processors or with 32-bit Solaris kernels. The 32-bit release continues to be compatible with both 32-bit and 64-bit Solaris kernels.

Note that the 64-bit and 32-bit releases of Sun Java System Web Server are packaged and distributed separately. It is not possible to upgrade an existing 32-bit Sun Java System Web Server installation to a 64-bit installation. It is possible to distinguish the 32-bit and 64-bit releases by the version string that is displayed in the installer, at server startup, and in the server errors log as follows:

Release 

Version String 

32–bit 

Sun ONE Web Server 6.1SP5 

64-bit 

Sun ONE Web Server 6.1SP5 (64-Bit) 

Solaris PKCS #11 Support

For Web Server's SSL subsystem (NSS) to use external PKCS#11 token(s), you need to configure NSS with the modutil command to make it aware of the token(s). The Solaris libpkcs11 softtoken is a PKCS#11 compliant token which can be used with NSS. As an additional benefit on UltraSPARC-T1, systems using Solaris 10's libpkcs11 will make use of the platform crypto acceleration support.

Before using the libpkcs11 provider, initialize its password with pktool:

% pktool setpin

Run the modutil command without any arguments for usage information. For example, to add the Solaris 10 libpkcs11 library as a PKCS11 token in NSS,

For further details on configuring NSS, see manpages and references: